Card-holder.



W. MOKINNON.

CARD HOLDER.

APPLICATION FILED MAR.2'7, 1913.

1 086 384 I Patented Feb. 10, 191 4.

A TTORNE Y COLUMBIA PLANOGRAMI co.. WASHINGTON. D. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WALTER MOKINNON, OF TACOMA, WASHINGTON.

CARD-HOLDER.

Application filed March 27, 1913.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, WVALTER MoKINNoN, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Tacoma, in the county of Pierce and State of Washington, have invented a new and useful Gard-Holder, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to boxes for holding calling or other cards, and has for its object to provide a mechanism within the box whereby a card may be ejected from the box whenever desired and the mechanism immediately reset to eject another card.

Other objects are to provide means for locking the card box and automatic means for unlocking it when it is desired to refill it, automatic means for holding the movable plate thereof in inoperative position when the box is opened, and automatic means for releasing the said plate when the box is closed.

I attain these and other objects by the devices, mechanisms, and arrangements illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal section of the box; Fig. 2 is a plan thereof, showing the upper side broken away to reveal the fixed plate and the ejecting mechanism, and a portion of the fixed plate broken away to reveal the upper card in the holder; Fig. 3 is a cross-section of the box, the cards having been omitted from the drawing; Fig. i is an end elevation of the box; Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the under side of the ejector bar; Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the ejector lever; Figs. 7 and 8 are sections of the box showing the cover-locking and. plate-locking mechanisms, the parts be ing in the positions occupied thereby when the cover is closed; Figs. 9 and 10 are similar views showing the parts in the positions occupied thereby when the cover is opened; and Fig. 11 is a plan of the end of the ejector bar, showing the ejector lever being returned into operative position.

Similar numerals of reference refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

The holder box consists of an outer casing 1, which completely covers the four sides and one end of the holder and which covers the upper portion of the other end thereof, and has a cover 2 hinged to the lower side and completing the closure of the box, except for a narrow slot 3 which ex- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 10,1914.

Serial No. 757,127.

tends substantially across the end of the box and through which the cards are ejected. A fixed plate 4: is fastened within the box a short distance from the upper side thereof. his plate 4 has a slot 5 cut in the center of its rear end, through which the ejector passes to engage the upper card of the stack in the box. The ejector bar 6 has its rear end 7 turned down to pass through the slot 5 and to engage the upper card of the stack to push it through the slot 3 when the said bar is moved forward as hereinafter described. The bar 6 slides on the plate l and is guided by straps S, secured to the plate, so that it may have a longitudinal movement on the plate. The bar 6 is moved to its operative position by the lever 9, which is pivoted to the plate a and whose outer end extends a short distance through a slot 10 in the side of the box 1. This lever 9 engages on the forward side of a pivoted catch 11, mounted at the forward end of the ejector bar 6, and this catch 11 cannot turn rearward on its pivot because of a pin 26 adjacent to its rearward side, sothat the rearward motion of the end of the lever 9 pushes the ejector bar 6 rearward against the acion of a spring 12 which is secured to the end of the catch 11 and to the box 1. The position of the pin 26 is such that when the inner end of the lever 9 is to the rear of the catch the said catch can be turned thereby on its pivot to allow the said end of the lever to pass forward thereof, as indicated in Fig. 11. Thus it will be seen that when the lever 9 is turned on its pivot the bar 6 is moved rearward so that the end 7 thereof passes to the rear of the uppermost card in the box, and a further movement of the bar 9 simply causes it to slip past the catch 11 thus allowing the spring 12 to pull the bar 6 suddenly forward and to eject the top card in the box; and that when the lever 9 is re leased the spring 27, secured thereto and to the box 1, will draw it back into its first position, pushing the catch 11 out of the way as it passes to the front side thereof.

A movable plate 13 is pressed upward toward the plate 4- by means of a number of springs 14c, the cards 15 being placed above the said plate 13 and being held against the lower side of the fixed plate 4; by means of the said springs. A cord or chain 16 is secured to the middle of the plate 13 on its under side and is also secured, at its other end, to a button 17 which loosely engages in a hole in the bottom of the box. This button and cord are used to withdraw the plate 13 from the plate 1 when the box is to be refilled, by first pulling the button 17 from the hole in the box 1 and then pulling on the chain 16 and drawing the plate 13 toward the bottom of the box,

A hook 18 is pivoted to the bottom of the box 1 in such position as to engage an eye 19 secured to the lower side of the plate 18, the hook being pressed toward the eye by a spring 20. The hook 18 cannot, however, engage the eye 19 while the cover 2 of the box is closed, because a lug 21, secured to the cover 2, engages a portion 01 the hook to prevent its turning on its pivot into engaging position. In order then that the hook may be brought into action it is necessary to open the cover 2, and this is accomplished by pressing down the hook 22, which is also pivoted to the bottom of the box 1 and which engages an eye 28 on the cover 2 (being kept therein by a spring 24:), by means of a lug 25 secured to the lower side of the plate 13 adjacent to or integral with the eye 19. Normally the plate 13 is above its lowermost position and the cover is closed, and therefore the hook 22 on the box 1 is in engagement with the eye 23 on the cover while the hook 18 on the box is withdrawn from operative engagementwith the eye 19 on the plate by the lug 21, but, as soon as the plate 13 is drawn downward by the chain 16, the lug 25 presses down on the hook 22 releasing the cover 2, which then opens and allows the hook 18 to move, under the action of the spring 20, to engage the eye 19 on the plate 18 so that the plate is locked in its withdrawn position and the cover 2 is open. 11 stack of new cards may now be placed in the space between the plates 4 and 13. Vhen the cards have thus been inserted, the cover 2 is closed, the lug 21 turning the hook 18 on its pivot, against the action of the spring 20, to remove the hook 18 from the eye 19 thus releasing the plate 13; as soon as the plate 13 is thus released it moves upward carrying the lug 25 with it and freeing the hook 22 thus allowing the said hook to turn on its pivot under the action of the spring 24 to engage in the eye 23 of the cover 2, thus it will be seen that as soon as the cover 2 is closed the plate 18 is released and the cover is locked and the machine is ready to be operated.

Having described my invention, what I claim is 1. In a card holder, the combination of a box; a hinged cover therefor; a movable plate within said box; springs pressing said movable plate toward one side; withdrawmg means secured to said plate whereby said plate may be drawn back against the action of said springs; and a latch normally holding said cover closed and adapted to be engaged by said plate when it is withdrawn to release said cover.

2. In a card holder, the combination of a box; a hinged cover therefor; a movable plate within said box; springs pressing said movable plate toward one side; withdrawing means secured to said plate whereby said plate may be drawn back against the action of said springs; a latch normally holding said cover closed and adapted to be engaged by said plate when it is withdrawn to release said cover; and a second latch normally held in inoperative position by said closed cover but adapted to engage and hold said withdrawn plate when said cover is open.

HALTER- MCKINNON. Witnesses M. F. MCNEIL, LOUIS J. MUsoHEK.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C. 

